What aircraft was involved and where did it happen?

The accident on 2018-03-02 involved a CESSNA AIRCRAFT C525A - CJ2, registration EC-KES, at Bern Flughafen (LSZB), BE, CH.

What was the probable cause of the accident?

The primary cause of the runway excursion was the crew's failure to maintain a stabilized approach, characterized by excessive approach speeds, compounded by the loss of visual runway references due to shallow fog.

Cessna 525A veers off runway during landing in Bern

A business jet veered off the runway into the snow at Bern Airport during a night landing, causing damage to the aircraft and runway lighting.

What happened

On the night of March 2, 2018, a Cessna 525A Citation Jet, registration EC-KES, was performing a commercial instrument approach to Bern Airport (LSZB) from Lille, France. The flight, operated by Taespe and carrying three passengers and two crew members, arrived at the airport during a period of low visibility caused by shallow fog.

During the landing phase on runway 14, the aircraft touched down significantly to the left of the runway centerline. As the aircraft rolled, it veered off the paved surface and into the snow-covered grass adjacent to the runway. The aircraft traveled approximately 300 meters through the snow, causing the left main gear, nose gear, and eventually the right main gear to leave tracks in the unpaved area. The pilot in command eventually corrected the course, steering the aircraft back onto the runway centerline. The excursion resulted in light damage to the aircraft, including dents to the landing and gear flaps and dirt accumulation on the left engine, as well as the destruction of several runway and taxiway edge lights.

The investigation

SUST examined radar records, meteorological data, and the aircraft's flight path. Investigators analyzed tire tracks left in the snow, which confirmed the lateral movement of all three landing gears off the pavement. The investigation also reviewed the airline's Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) regarding approach speeds and the airport'1s lighting configuration. While the runway friction coefficient was measured at 0.7 (indicating good braking action), the presence of shallow fog and the lack of runway centerline lights at Bern were noted as critical environmental factors.

Findings

The crew conducted the approach at a significantly excessive speed, failing to maintain a stabilized approach. At 2 NM from the threshold, the airspeed was approximately 158 kt, which was 43 kt above the recommended final approach speed of 115 kt.
The presence of shallow fog likely obscured vital visual cues, such as runway edge lights, which are necessary for directional guidance during landing.
The crew may have mistakenly identified the runway edge lights as centerline lights, leading them to align the aircraft with the left edge of the pavement.
The aircraft initially touched down on the left side of the runway, and the lateral deviation was not corrected until the aircraft had already entered the snow-covered area.